Fill in the Blank Challenge
by RionaleprechaunwingsGallagher
Summary: What happened between "Aliens in a Spaceship" and "Headless Witch in the Woods"? Part of Razztaztic's Fill in the Blank Summer Challenge. :-)
1. Chapter 1

Hello, there. This is part of **razztaztic's** Fill in the Blank Challenge. Start at any point in "Aliens in a Spaceship" after the rescue and go to any point of "The Headless Witch in the Woods". Just keep the episode stuff in-canon. I tweaked that rule just a tiny bit, but the very last conversation between Booth and Brennan would have happened off-screen during the episode, anyways. xD

Anyways, this will be just my first entry. :-)

And, a big shout out to **threesquares.** Without her, my muse would have been lost, and I would not have been able to get this in as quickly. Thank you!

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**Scenario 1: Need You By My Side or Startling Realizations (I can't choose a title. xD)**

Booth stared hard from the top of the hill, looking down into the ravine. He needed to find Bones. He wouldn't let Bones or Hodgins die. His eyes caught a movement from below. A puff of dirt flew into the air. It was them. He knew it. He started scrambling down the sandy hillside, flailing his arms to keep his balance. He landed on his knees and started digging.

_Come on, Bones. I'm here. I'm here. You have to be okay. Don't you dare leave me. You have to be okay. I'm here now, and everything's going to be fine. _Booth thought desperately.

His fingers hit a hand, and his heart leapt. It was Bones'. He grabbed her and started pulling. He half dug, half pulled to get her free. As soon as her upper body was uncovered, he wrapped his arms around her and heaved. She was coughing, covered in dust and sand.

"Get Hodgins," she choked.

Booth turned, helping the others dig out Hodgins. As soon as Hodgins was out, Booth returned his attention to his partner. He scrambled to her side. Then he smiled in relief. She looked into his eyes and smiled back. Then, he started laughing, just giddy with relief. She joined in, and he thought it was the most musical sound he'd ever heard. As he looked at her, he realized something life altering. If she had been left in that pit, and he had pulled out her corpse, he wouldn't know how to cope. If he ever looked and didn't see this woman by his side, it would shatter his entire world. He loved his partner. He was in love with her.

~*~BONES~*~

Two days later, Booth got a phone call alerting him that his partner was going back into work. Booth sighed and rubbed his temples as he finished the call from Cam. Not only did he have to worry about his partner trying to do things like work when she should be home resting, but he also had to deal with the fact that he was in love with her and the subsequent falling out with Cam. At a little after 1, after being buried under paper work all day, Booth grabbed his suit jacket and headed to the Jeffersonian to pick Bones up for lunch.

"C'mon, Bones," Booth said as he walked into her office. "We're getting food." He grabbed her hand and helped her up before grabbing her coat and draping it over her shoulders for her.

She looked at him strangely, but he didn't even realize what he had done. He was reveling in his small victory of touching her without being slapped. He put his hand on the small of her back, the little piece of Bones property that he'd claimed as his long ago, and walked her out towards his SUV. He opened the passenger door for her and helped her step in before going around to his side. She continued to look at him strangely. This time, he noticed.

"What?" he asked.

"You're touching me more than usual. Is everything okay, Booth?"

"I am?"

"Yes, Booth. While it is usual for you to get me up from my chair, you don't normally put on my coat for me or help me into the SUV. What is going on?" Bones inquired.

"It's nothing," he stated, as if that was to be the end of it.

"Are you sure?" Of course, nothing could ever end simply with his partner.

"Of course I'm sure," he insisted. "I'm fine, Bones. It's _you_ I'm worried about. It's been two days! Are you sure you're ready to be working again?"

"Of course I am, Booth!" she replied loudly.

"Okay, okay!" He held up his hands after parking. "I just want to make sure!"

She rolled her eyes at her partner and walked ahead of him into the Diner. She slid into their table, and he followed the movement with his eyes. He needed to cool his jets around her. He knew not to rush her, and he needed to stop acting _way_ overprotective and weird. Just because he realized that losing her would turn everything he knew upside down, especially if she didn't know how he felt, didn't mean that he had to act like a fifteen year old on his first date. He knew how to act around his partner.

Their favorite waitress walked over, and she smiled at them both.

"The usual?"

"You got it, Marie," Booth answered, flashing her his charm smile.

"I'll be right out with that, then." She turned and walked back, leaving the partners alone once more.

Booth turned back to his partner, and he watched as she fidgeted in her seat. He knew that she was still uncomfortable with things, even if she wouldn't admit it. He could see the way that her eyes were darting around, the slight movements she made with every noise.

"Bones, are you sure you're okay?" Booth asked quietly.

"Yes, Booth! I'm fine!" she snapped.

He sighed, and went back to silently watching her. It would not do well to make his partner angry. Their food came, and he pushed the plate of fries closer towards her, knowing she'd eat off of it. He chomped down on his burger and chewed thoughtfully, lost in his thoughts. A smile crossed his face as Bones' dainty fingers reached over and took a fry from the plate.

"Booth!" Her voice broke him from his thoughts.

"What?" He blinked wildly, trying to remain in the present.

"You have ketchup dripping onto your tie," Bones stated matter-of-factly.

Booth looked down. "Damn it."

He set his burger down and tried his best to clean off the ketchup with some napkins. He still had a big blob-like stain on his tie, but it wouldn't be too noticeable. He'd have time to go and switch ties with the spare he kept in his office.

"What were you thinking about?" Bones asked him curiously.

"Nothing in particular," he answered, semi-honestly.

"You can tell me, Booth," she replied softly.

"I know I can, but I really wasn't thinking about anything. I was just zoning out." Booth smiled reassuringly at her, and she smiled back, eating another fry.

Booth carefully ate the last of his burger as Bones ate his fries. He helped her finish them off before his phone rang.

"Booth!" he barked into it.

"We got a headless body in the woods, Booth. Will you and Dr. Brennan be up for it?" Sam Cullen's voice came through the phone.

"Yeah, we're on it," Booth answered shortly.

Without a word, both men hung up. Booth turned back to his partner.

"We got a case!" he told her.

"Stop by the Jeffersonian on the way, please, Booth. I need to grab some things."

Booth nodded and threw down some cash as the pair left.

~*~BONES~*~

Booth jumped out of the SUV and hurried around to Brennan's door, opening it up for her. She stepped down and grabbed his shoulder to steady herself when she tripped on the uneven ground.

"Whoa, steady there, Bones." Booth helped her upright again.

"Thank you, Booth."

"Uh-huh. Now, stay close. These woods look really thick, and I do not need to be searching for you. You tend to drift off to look at stuff, and I don't need that today."

"I investigate the outer areas, Booth!"

"Yeah, and you try to give me heart attacks every time I lose you."

"You're far too young and healthy to have a heart attack, Booth. Stop being dramatic."

Booth sighed and rolled his eyes when she started walking to meet their guide before taking longer strides to catch up. Even if he did like watching her move from the back.

~*~BONES~*~

"People need connection, Booth. Even me. Obviously you have one with Cam."

Booth coughed and looked at his partner. "What?"

"I thought you would've mentioned it. Isn't that what partners do? Tell each other about their lives?"

"Wait a second, look, Bones," Booth said, trying not to laugh.

"Sorry. I'm sorry." Brennan laughed. "I forgot how self conscious you are talking about sex."

"I am not—I'm not—um." Booth waved his hand in the air. "Look, Cam and I aren't a couple. We're close friends."

"The actions between you two this morning appeared to be couple-like actions, Booth."

"We were, okay? I was being discreet. A gentleman is discreet. But, I had to break it off."

"Why?" Bones inquired.

"Because," he said shortly. "The two of us just couldn't be together after I thought about it."

_After I thought about how I would feel losing you and realizing that I was in love with you_. Booth added mentally.

"What was there to think about?" Bones pressed.

"The two of us wouldn't work in a long-term relationship, Bones. I'm looking to settle down and have a family. Cam doesn't want kids. And, we've done this before. We just don't really work as a couple. It would have happened sooner or later, and I just ended it sooner."

"But why?"

"Because I'm in love with someone else!" Booth exclaimed, his partner's needling hitting him.

"Booth, love is just chemical messages sent to the brain."

Booth shook his head, immediately rejecting his partner's science. "Love is realizing that you never want to look to your side and see the person you love missing. Love is realizing that losing them would turn your entire world upside down and leave a hole in your body. Love is irrational, and it means a lot. Love is commitment. Not marriage, Bones, commitment. Love is going through the ups and downs, the good times and bad ones, but doing it all together."

Bones stared at Booth for a long while. "Are you in love with me?" she asked.

Booth clenched his jaw. Of course, it's only the most important conversation he's ever had with her, and she finally recognizes the context clues that mean he's talking about her.

"Yeah, Bones," he finally said, speaking softly and tenderly. "I'm talking about you. I'm in love with you. When the Gravedigger had you, I went nuts. I completely lost it. If I had actually lost you, if you had died, I don't know what I would've done. I know you don't feel the same. I know you don't believe in love. But, that's the truth. I love you. I'm never going to leave your side. Not willingly. Death will have to take me before I leave you. So, that's just how it is. Even if we never get together, I'm still yours."

"But, what about your dream of a family, Booth?" she whispered.

"I'll take what I can get, Bones. And, I don't know if I'll ever be able to have a chance just being with you. I don't want to rush you or scare you. If you just want to be friends and partners, I'll take that. But, I don't ever want to lose you."

She placed her hand on his knee. "I'm no good at relationships, Booth. I don't want to hurt you."

"If we do this, Bones, it's going to be tough. We'll argue and fight and we'll get under each other's skin. But, what matters is that we don't let the little things be our downfall. It'll be hard, and some days we may not exactly like each other, but we wouldn't want to lose each other. I know for a fact that I wouldn't be able to be truly happy without you. No matter how much you frustrate me or drive me crazy, I always want you by my side. That will never change."

Brennan stared at him, digesting his words. "I can try," she said finally. "But, you're going to have to help me."

Booth grinned widely, his heart jumping. "Oh, Bones, of course I'm gonna help you. And you're gonna have to help me. Every relationship is different. But, we're gonna last."

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So, there's that. Review, and I'll get more scenarios to you guys soon. Thanks to all! :-)

-AL


	2. Chapter 2

Okay, here's the second scenario for those of you who are reading. This one is shorter, but I feel like Angela and Hodgins don't need as many words as Booth and Brennan do. Angela and Hodgins can communicate in other ways. :-) Hope you enjoy.

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**Scenario 2: Together**

Angela left the hospital with the teddy bear, knowing exactly where Hodgins would be. Sure enough, she found him seated at a microscope.

"I went to visit you at the hospital," she told him. "I brought you this." She set down the teddy bear next to him.

"They-they let me go home," Hodgins answered softly.

"No, they didn't. You left without being discharged. You stole crutches, which I had to pay for," Angela argued.

"They packed me up, pumped me full of antibiotics, stitched me up, and gave me pain killers, so I'm-I'm good to go," Hodgins replied.

Angela kneeled down next to where Hodgins was sitting. "Could you please look at me?" she asked tenderly, hurting to see Hodgins in so much pain.

Hodgins turned slowly to look at her, putting his things down to do so. Angela could see the pain, fear, and stress in his electric blue eyes.

"You were buried alive," she said. "You were operated on without an anesthetic. You were pumped full of drugs. You really should be lying down."

"He's out there, Angela. He buries people alive. I have to catch him." Hodgins' voice trembled just a little as he spoke, and only Angela knew it was the pain and not his exhaustion. "If I could figure out the exact alloy of aluminum, maybe I could-maybe we could- Plus the bit of-bit of bumper sticker that Brennan found in my leg."

"Hey, we're going to catch him, okay?" Angela said strongly. "I promise you. We're gonna start tomorrow. All of us, together."

Hodgins looked her straight in the eyes. "I can't sleep, Angela."

"I thought they gave you something for that." Angela's voice held more concern in it now.

"No, I mean, I'm afraid to sleep. That when I close my eyes, when I open them up, I'll be back in that car. Buried, running out of air." Hodgins' voice shook, and tears slid down his face.

Angela's heart hurt, and she made up her mind. "Okay, then you should come home with me."

"What?" Hodgins asked.

"When you open your eyes, I'll be there."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Angela nodded, assuring him.

"You know I'm good for that crutch money," Hodgins told her, and they both laughed.

Angela took his hand and helped him up. He used his crutches to get out to her car, and she drove them back to her place. She helped him get into bed before sliding in herself, resting her head on his chest. He put his arms around her, and she smiled.

"Goodnight, Jack."

"Goodnight, Angela," he said hoarsely.

~*~BONES~*~

The next day, the two of them stayed at Angela's apartment. She brought out her paint sets and she started doing landscapes. Hodgins watched her in silence, a smile on his face. He liked watching her work. He could see the way her lips pressed together when she was truly focused, the way that she held herself so relaxed and loose. She was much more at ease with a paintbrush in her hand than he had ever seen her at the Jeffersonian. He felt honored to see her in her comfort zone.

"Can I try?" he asked after she finished her third painting, this one of a sunset.

"Sure." She smiled at him.

"You're going to have to guide me. I don't do painting."

Angela moved over to give Hodgins some room. "It's easy. You just paint whatever you're feeling. I like doing landscapes, because they make me happy."

Hodgins nodded. He remembered the lake near where he grew up, where he first found his love of etymology and botany. It was his getaway place, his favorite place. So, he started painting. Angela's presence kept him calm, and this allowed him to paint an accurate representation of the lake that held so many good memories.

"This is beautiful, Jack," Angela said.

"It's for you."

"Thank you."

She kissed him, and the two ate something before going back to painting.

~*~BONES~*~

The next day, they went back to work. At lunch time, Booth and Brennan had gotten a call for a case, so they waited for the crime scene evidence to be brought back. Hodgins worked on the particulates while Angela tried to clean the video. Things were going back to normal.

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Okay, there's that. I hope you enjoyed. Please leave me a review. :-)

-AL


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